Door-securing mechanism



p 1929- P. R. DREN.NING 1,728,530

Filed F'eb. 9, 1927 Patented Sept. 17, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PERCY R. DRENNING, on BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, Assrenon To T. H. SYMINGTON &son, mo, or BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, A CORPORATION on MARYLAND,

DOOR-SECURING MECHANISM Applicationfiled February 9, 1927. Serial No.166,883.

My invention relates to door securing mechanisms.

The principal object oi my invention is to devise a mechanism for useonthe doors of refrigerator cars and similar constructions which isarranged to effect theirair tight clossure when operated in onedirection and also to cause a preliminary movement of the same as an aidin opening,'when operatedin the opposite direction.-

A further object isto devise a mechanism of the character describedwhich is arranged to maintain an effective closure of the doors over aconsiderable period of time, regardless of wear, tendency of the'doorsto acquire an abnormal setting, or other factors which act to break downthe seal between the door and frame edges, and accordingly serve todestroy the refrigerating temperature within the car.

A further object is to provide a securing mechanism for doors inwhichthe pressure is applied to the door at points which insure a moreuniform and effective closin'g force and which also servesto preventbowing of the doors. I

A further objectis to arrange the foregoing mechanism so that it iscapable of easy and positive operation, is simple and durable inconstruction and to which the conventional security seal may be applied.

In general, my invention belongs to that class of door locks in which alocking bar spans the door and is given a motion OflOtL- tion to eii'ectan initial opening or final closing of the door. For this purpose,suitable brackets are provided on the door frame which coact with, crankarms, eccentrics, or other elements on the locking bar to produce thedesired result. As this arrangement has been heretofore'known in theart, considerable diiiiculty has been experienced in achieving aneiiective seal between the doors and between any door and the adjacentportion of the frame, after wear occurs or other air leak age causesintervene. The movement which present locks impart to a door is fixed bythe space relation of the component elements and no provision is madefor compensating for the looseness of the doors that may arise from theforegoing causes. Accordingly, the refrigerating. capacity or" the cargradually decreases with use, due to the breaking of the air tight sealat the doors. I I

As a solution of this problem, it has been the practice to mountresilient packing strips on the doors which will act to take up theadditional clearance and hence maintain the seal. However, thisconstruction requires ad. ditional changes in the doors and is expensiveto install. A

I My invention necessitates no changes in the doors proper and permitsthe retention of the I usuali'elt and canvas packing, while at the sametime, it is arranged to secure an eii'ective, closing of thedoors,whether worn or otherwise. bar, which during the final closing ofthe door, undergoes abending force, resulting eitherin an actual strainorbending, or in a tendency so to act, the, reaction from which isadditive tothat existing between the bar, due

to its bodily rotation, and the brackets on the frame. The lattermaybecalled the primary reaction and is capable of closing a new doortightly, while the bending reaction is secondmy in nature and serves asa reservoir from which pressure may be derived for taking up play in thedoor as wear occurs. Hence, the

Essentially, it comprehends a locking) effective life of the door fromthe standpoint tor car doors showing my door securing mechanism appliedthereto.

Fig. 2 isavertical sect-ion along the right hand door in Fig. 1,lookingin the direction of the arrow 2 in said figure. H

Figs; '3 and dare sections along the lines 3 3 and44, respectively, inFig. 1, look-. inillin the direction of the arrows. I

. Fig. ,5 is aside view of one end of the looking bar used in mymechanism.

In the drawin The numeral denotes the side of a retrigerator car inwhich is formed the usual opening 11, the upper and lower boundarysurfaces of which may be inclined as at 12 in the customary manner.Doors 13 and let are pivotally mounted, as by hinges 15, in said openingand the meeting edges thereof, 16 and 17 respectively, may be inclinedto the thickness of said doors in accordance with present practice. Saidedges may have applied thereto suitable packing strips of canvas, felt,or other sealing material, that will afford an air tight jointtherealong when said doors are closed.

Aligned bearing blocks 18 are secured to the door 14 adjacent theswinging edge thereof and are spaced from the end edges of said door atsome convenient distance for a purpose hereinafter explained. A lockingbar 19, preferably rectangular in cross section, is rotatably mounted insaid blocks through the medium of circular segments 20 which are securedthereto. Said bar extends through said blocks beyond the end edges ofsaid door and collars 21 secured to said bar adjacent said blocksprevent endwise movement thereof. A crank arm 22 is formed on each endof the bar 19 and carries a bearing pin 23 which may be formedintegrally there-with or otherwise.

A bracket 24 is secured to the car side 10 adjacent each of the pins 23and said bracket comprises a slot 25 having the walls 26 and 27 whichare substantially parallel to the surface of the side 10. Said slot isclosed at one end, but communicates at the opposite end with a mouth 31through which the pin 23 passes in the operation of the mechanism ashereinafter explained.

An operating lever 29 is secured to the bar 19 above the lower block 18and said lever may be provided with a suitable hand grip. A slot 30 isformed in said lever for engagement with a staple 31 which is carried bya bracket 32 mounted on the door 13. Said bracket may be furtherprovided with ears 33 through which and the staple 31 a hook 34 may passin order to maintain the lever 29 in a locked position. The usualsealing wire 35 may be passed through said hook and any conventionalportion of the bracket 32. The numeral 36 represents a conventionallatch which is pivotally mounted on the side 10 and adapted to hold thedoor 13 in a closed position, when the other door is opened or closed.

The operation of my improved door securing mechanism is as follows:

Assuming that'the doors are open and that it is desired to close thesame, the door 13,

door 1& to a partly closed position, or one in which the pin 23registers approximately with the mouth 28. In this position, the lever29 will occupy such a position as will secure the aforesaid mentionedresult.

Said lever will then be grasped and moved in a clockwise direction, whenviewed as indicated by the arrow 6 in Fig. 1, thus causing a similarmovement on the part of the arm 22 to bring the pin 23 within the slot25,

Continued movement of said lever eventually brings said pin intocont-act with the wall 27 of said slot. Further movement of said leverwill then set up a. cam-like action between said pin and said wall, thereaction from which operating through the blocks 18 serves to close thedoor 14. The lever 29 may then be secured in position by means of a hook34 and the sealing wire 35 applied in the usual manner.

During this functioning and due to the manner in which the bar 29 issupported on the door 14, it is evident that a bending force will beapplied to the pin 23 by the wall 27 and will effect an actual bend ofsaid bar over the edge of each block18 which is adjacent to thecorresponding pin 23. It will be understood that the bar 19 will be madeof suitable material and will possess an appro priate cross section tofacilitate the application of the bending force without any possibilityof acquiring a permanent set. In other words, the bar will embody aresilient characteristic which afiords a means of storing energy thereinwhen bent, and which is present in both ends of the bar.

The advantages of storing up this energy can be readily understood byreference to Fig. 4. The reaction between the pin 23 and the wall 27 dueto the bending stress may be considered as additional to that arisingfrom the rotation of the bar 19. The latter corresponds to that which isobtainable in present constructions of this character, but it is obviousthat after the door has been closed and the operating lever has reachedits final position, no further means are available for effecting anadditional closing due to the play occasioned by wear or other causes.However, in my arrangement,

the pin 23 is capable of additional movement in a direction to cause, afurther motion of the door by reason of the energy stored in the bentportion of the bar 19 during its rotation to close said door.Accordingly, as wear occurs, the tendency of said bar to resume itsnormal shape operates as an eflective means for maintaining thetightness of the door, since there is always a pressure exerted in adirection to fully seat the door, within the limitations of the device.

It is evident from the foregoing that my securing mechanism possessessuperior advantages over those which depend entirely upon a cummingaction, or similar modes of operation, to obtain a closing of the door.

As an aid in this respect, it will be noted first, that the blocks 18are positioned relatively close to the swinging edge of the door 14: andsecond, that said blocks are spaced from the end edges of said door.From these considerations, it follows that'pressure is applied to saiddoor in locations which insure the most effective closing, and alsothat, consistent with this feature, the maximum bend may be given to theends of the bar 19 in order to secure a maximum take-up of the door.spaced disposition of the blocks 18 from the end edges of the dooreliminates any tendency of the latter to bow during the closingmovement.

If it is desired to open the doors, it is only necessary to remove thehook 34; and rotate the lever 29 in a counter clockwise direction. Thebearing pin 23 will then be moved into contact with the wall 26 of theslot 25, the reaction from which operating through the bar 19 and blocks18 will open the door 14.

It not contemplated that my device will be limited in itsapplication tothe doors of refrigerator cars, as it is obvious that it is readilyadaptable to other situations in which the same problems appear.

l/Vhile I have shown one set of elements and combinations thereof foreffectuating my improved securing mechanism, it is to be understood thatthe same are for the purpose of illustration only and in nowise to limitmy device to the exact forms and structures shown, for many changes maybe made therein without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. A'door securing mechanism comprising in combination, a door forclosing an opening a locking bar rotatably mounted on said door, abracket adjacent said opening adapted to enact with said bar uponrotation thereof to close said door and to bend said bar, and a leverfor rotating said bar, said bar resuming its original shape when saiddoor is opened.

2. A door securing mechanism comprising in combination, door for closingan opening, bearing blocks carried by said door and spaced from theupper and lower edges thereof, a locking bar rotatably mounted in saidblocks, brackets adjacent said opening adapted to coact with said barupon rotation thereof to close said door and to bend said bar over theouter edges of said blocks, and a lever for rotating said bar, said barresuming its original shape when said door is opened.

A door securing mechanism comprising in combination, a door for closingan opening, a locking bar rotatably mounted on said door and extendingbeyond the upper and lower edges thereot, crank arms provided Further,it will be noted that the c PERCY R. DRENNING.

